Food, Travel, & Love

Fat Ernie’s Family Dining

14 September 2020

Where do we begin? This diner has everything! It is the perfect spot for Chris who loves breakfast and Emily who prefers dinner foods.

Emily had the All You Can Eat Fried Chicken. For her appetizer she had Gumbo. It was very flavorful, but the chicken used tased like canned or boiled chicken. The Gumbo would have been much better with fresh chicken.

Chris had the breakfast platter. (Seen below) Chris had no complaints! Note the bacon is very tasty!

Emily enjoyed the Chicken, Potatoes, and Skillet Gravy. However, the Green Beans tasted like they had warmed them straight from the can. The skillet gravy reminded Emily of her Granny’s Saturday morning gravy. Highly recommend!

The only complaint is Fat Ernie’s is not overly clean. We’d love to give it a 10/10 rating, but the cleanliness would have to come up before we did that.

Please remember what we like or do not like may not be the same as what you like or dislike. In all of our reviews, keep in mind opinions change between people. We want to encourage you to keep it local and support your area businesses.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

Special Edition: Coffee Love

12 September 2020

Il Primo- Original Location on East Central

As I picked up my coffee on Wednesday morning, I realized I still had not done a feature on one of my favorite shops in Wichita. By this point in our blog, I cannot tell you how many times I have been to Il Primo. There are so many different things to recommend, but I will start with my most recent drink.

Emily’s Scale- Cleanliness, Cost, Customer Service, Espresso, Food, Location(s), Milk Alternatives, Seating, Speed of Service, and Unique Finds. Giving a grand total of 50 points to be earned or 5 points each: 1 being the worst and 5 being the best.

Cleanliness (5), Cost (5), Customer Service (5), Espresso (5), Food (3), Location(s) (3), Milk Alternatives (5), Seating (4), Speed of Service (2), and Unique Finds (5). Grand total for Il Primo is 42.

The only thing I feel Il Primo could do better would be to rearrange how they make drinks for the drive-through. There have been many times I have waited in the drive far longer than I wanted. 9/10 times I prefer to go inside as I can get my drink faster than sitting in the drive. The other thing I feel they could do better is with their baked goods. Frequently the baked goods made in house are over baked.

Food, Travel, & Love- Emily

Pasta Express

5 February 2021

We couldn’t let the sun go down again without posting this review. We love pasta! Italian is probably our second favorite food group. A local favorite of ours is Pasta Express. We have eaten there countless times since starting our blog.

We started with an appetizer. While they do not make the ravioli in house, it is still quite good. Next, we ordered extra breadsticks, this is a must every time. Our favorite pasta dish is the Crispy Chicken Alfredo. While the tomato based sauce is alright, we find it a bit powerful with onion. Our recommendation is order anything with Alfredo sauce.

Now, who likes dessert? We do! If your meal does not come with a brownie, get one, rather get two because there are two in an order. Do not try and share with a friend: trust us, not a wise decision as you will fight over it. If you would like a drink with your food, they have awesome sweet tea and lemonade.

This meal or LESS would cost you MORE at Fazoli’s or Olive Garden. Do yourself a favor and drive out of your way for Pasta Express. Our entire order was less than $25.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

Do roses & sunflowers go together?

10 September 2020

Before it was trendy, Emily told Chris she loved Roses, but she also loved Sunflowers. The first bouquet Chris ever gave Emily was designed by himself, not the flower shop. Since then it has been our go to bouquet.

When it came time to choosing our wedding flowers, we did not need to argue over it. We somehow knew what we were going to ask for at the consultation.

Photo Credit to Steve Rasmussen Photography

Our entire wedding was symbolic. It only made sense the flowers meant something to us. In Emily’s bouquet there were seven blue Roses which represented the seven year commitment we already had with one another. We then added two Sunflowers. Was yellow a color in our wedding? No, but it symbolized the happiness we brought to each other in one bouquet, representing our life together as one.

We learned about an awesome little shop that was able to freeze our wedding flowers in time. Several months and a few hundred dollars later, we were able to see the finished product. Stop by Floral Preservation by Granny Square for all your freezing needs.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

Dog & Shake

8 September 2020

Sometimes you just need a snack! A couple of Sundays ago we decided to go for a little drive. We did not want to grab something from a gas station to eat, so we decided to hit up Dog and Shake before leaving town.

Chris had a Cinnamon & Peanut Butter Shake. Chris highly recommends!

Emily ordered a Pork Fritter Sandwich, but forgot she does not like Dog and Shake’s mayonnaise. The mayonnaise tasted like cheap Miracle Whip, so if you like Miracle Whip, you would probably like it.

Dog and Shake’s Chicken Rings are their version of chicken nuggets. They are pretty tasty by themselves. Dog and Shake does offer ketchup and a few other dipping sauces. We probably should have mentioned earlier: we are not fans of any of their condiments as they all taste cheap.

Next, the 50-50 order was half Onion Rings and half French Fries. Dog and Shake hand breads their Onion Rings which is probably why they are so tasty. The French Fries we ordered without salt.

While we would not go to Dog and Shake for a fancy or date night meal, we do often go for a quick snack. Visit one of their multiple locations around Wichita.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

What is significant about stars?

6 September 2020

We love nature and we especially love nature at night. The majority of our dating years we took walks and enjoyed the peace of the night. After almost 13 years of dating we still enjoy sitting by a fire under the stars.

When it came to designing our wedding cake, we had a vision. We had no desire for flowers or a silly themed cake. Like the rest of our wedding we wanted the cake to be symbolic, hence the stars. The flavor of the cake was on point as each tier was a different flavor.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

Flashback Date

11 August 2015…read that again…

How many married couples love LEGOs? We cannot be the only ones! Chris had always wanted to go to Legoland, but never got the chance. The other side of that is Legoland only allows adults who bring children with them, so he thought his chance of ever going was in the far distant future.

As Emily was researching one night, she found 90’s night, an adult only event at Legoland- Kansas City. She thought, “Chris is going to love this adventure.”

Kansas City is about three hours from our house. We drove and how fun it was to see Chris’ face beam. We arrived to 90s music and LEGO pieces set-up as movies, shows, and pop culture structured as all things we remembered.

The only struggle of the night was when a Generation Zer thought Chris had stolen the Pokemon he was trying to catch. Chris said, “I’m here for 90s night, not to catch Pokémon.” Funny how we remember little things like that.

Not all dates are 10 minutes from the house, some dates you have to plan a weekend trip. We cannot tell you how much we enjoy our little adventures.

Never stop dating each other!

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

How did we meet?

4 September 2020

A little background before we tell of our specific meeting. When Emily was in Kindergarten and Chris was in First grade, we attended the same school, but oddly enough, never met…we even have a school picture where we are very near to one another. How bizarre is that?!

In 2004, we met at Word of Life Traditional School. Both were between classes. Emily was heading back to her 6th grade classroom. Chris was a cool Middle Schooler and transitioning to his next class with a friend. We shared a mutual friend who introduced us in the hallway.

Neither of us ever dreamed 16.5 years later we would not only be the best of friends, but married as well.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

Shanghai Restaurant

3 September 2020

Where do we even begin? Every time we dine-in or grab take-out from Shanghai we enjoy it. In over 20 years of dining there we would call that really good odds.

Some of our favorite items include: Chicken on a Stick, Egg Rolls, and Lo Mein for Chris & for Emily- Broccoli Beef, Coconut Shrimp, and Pepper Steak.

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily

The Month of Love

1 September 2020

Stars, the Number 21, and Roses with Sunflowers…find out what makes these and many more things special for us. September holds our wedding anniversary- all month long learn something new!

Celebrate with us as we embark on our sixth year of marriage.

Also, be on the lookout for an exciting addition to our blog!

Food, Travel, & Love- Chris & Emily